


Suledin, Revas, Suledin

by owljustsitinthecorner



Series: Dragon Age Shenanigans [2]
Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: ADHD Character, M/M, Mentions of Past Slavery, Not Beta Read, Trust Issues, Vent Piece
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-24
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2019-01-04 18:51:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12174609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/owljustsitinthecorner/pseuds/owljustsitinthecorner
Summary: The Inner Circle learns a few things.





	Suledin, Revas, Suledin

**Author's Note:**

> So i just really needed to take out some emotions, this has nothing to do with the on going series i havent touched since school started back up, this is just me beating my emotions with a stick.
> 
> the title means "Endure, Freedom, Endure"
> 
> EDIT: since i don't have a tumblr/twitter i now have a discord server  
> https://discord.gg/93vkAEd

    Ell Lavellan does not trust easily. Sure, to most of the inner circle he was nice, he would banter, toss jokes, answer small questions about dalish life. To most, he was nice, if a bit short tempered. When Cassandra made the comment on “room for one more guard” he responded with a very curt “the god whose followers committed genocide against my people in his name? that god?”. When Dorian made the comment on some slaves being “treated poorly” he walked around with a black eye for a few days. Aside from those few outbursts, he was very respectful and easy to get on with.

    That said the members of the Inquisition’s inner circle slowly picked up on the fact that they knew little about the “Herald of Andraste” aside from observations. At one point, it was brought up in a tavern conversation and Bull bluntly stated, “He doesn’t trust us.”

    And because of how nice the Herald was just about everyone was inclined to disagree at first. But, in the time it took to stockpile lyrium for the assault on the Breach, not even Solas, who he showed the most respect to, could get more than an “it’s not really important” for an answer. Bull’s “told ya so” was deserved in the end.

 

    Despite the mistrust, he was one who knew how to lead. Not too long after the hopeful chorus the trek to Skyhold began and his training as Keeper’s First showed. Each time they set camp he’d make rounds to the supplies, rations, healers, and spent some time talking to Solas, make sure everyone was fed, warm, well, and that they were still on track to Skyhold. He spoke often to those still injured, and when he could spare the energy, supplied his own talent for healing. Once at Skyhold little changed. He began to trust them to do their jobs and not stab him in the back, but anything personal was off limits.

 

The Exalted Plains changed a lot of things. For the first time, they saw their leader cry. In that moment, he was no longer Lord Inquisitor Lavellan, Herald of Andraste. In the Plains, he was Ell Lavellan First of Clan Lavellan. The loss of Solas’s friend playing hard on the dalish’s already tenuous emotions. The first conversation with the clan that was there was devastating for him, his time among the shems alienating him from his people. Finding venatori do close to the clan causing clear panic. The undead, the poor mage’s greatest fear, almost broke him. By the end of one day, he seemed ready to break and Solas’s silence in the camp did little to help, stories of the fade from the older elf his usual remedy for a tough day.

After a few hours, the tense air in the camp becomes too much and he stomps out of his tent with a curt “Halla herd to the north, I’ll be back” to the scouts and a “Don’t follow me, I need some time” to Cassandra as she stood to speak. Most of the camp settled in for the night, though certain members seemed unable to fall asleep. Solas and Bull sat across from each other at the fire, Bull facing the direction Ell left. You’re starting to get attached, one part of his brain told him. The elf had no issues flirting, and did so often and before the ill-fated galivant into the Plains Bull had even considered initiating some fun. But even once they returned to Skyhold, waiting was best. Ell’s response to his emotions was often explosive and ended in him drunk off his ass. (The weirdest part? He has never been seen drinking known alcoholic substances.)

_Rustle_

Bull sits up looking around slowly, Solas slowly reaches for the staff propped up next to him.

An arrow streaks through and strikes the staff.

A grenade bursts as Bull dives for his ax.

A few rogues burst from the shadows.

Cassandra comes out of her tent sword in hand.

Sera throws her own grenade at the spellbinder behind the rogues.

Three warriors burst forth with ropes.

Dorian comes out his tent staff in hand only to freeze in place.

Vivienne does the same.

Three large grenades drop as Varric, Cole, and Blackwall burst from their tents.

Everyone in the camp drops, the drug filling their lungs and knocking them out.

 

Slowly, _so slowly_ , Bull opens his eyes. His hands and feet are shackled with heavy iron, his horns are bound to the cage behind him where he can hear Cassandra, Blackwall, and Varric swearing. He can see as Dorian and Vivienne have mage bane forced down their throats. Then his eyes fall to Solas and Sera, who are shackled in the cage at the other side of what was their camp. Whereas Sera is still out cold, Solas is wide awake and calling out insults, his face already bruised and bleeding. Bull finds himself thanking the Creators on behalf of Ell that the dalish isn’t here. His mouth cost the Inquisition noble support, here and now it would cost him his life.

Dorian and Vivienne are both tossed into another cage, limp from the double dose of drugs. And Bull assesses their odds. If his horns are only bound with some rope, he might be able to break his head free and smash the cage enough to allow the others out, the surprise might give them the time they need to win. But the noise from breaking out of the rope, if it I rope, would cost them the surprise aspect. If Cole was smart he might already be free, but he would have gone off after the Ell, who needed to stay away if the Inquisition was going to last. If Cole was simply still out in the cage behind him then they might be able to wake him and use him for a surprise attack, if they could talk without drawing attention. Odds are pretty shit.

Suddenly a long stream of Tevene bursts from Dorian, the mage sluggishly gripping the cage as he glares at their captors. The Venatori mage in charge laughs out a response, smiling unperturbed by what was no doubt a string of colorful insults if Bull knows Dorian at all. Dorian says something else in a slow, cold voice and the Venatori stops smiling and slams the decorative end of his staff through the bars into Dorians face. His angry biting remark to Dorian hides the small shuffle in the bushes, and Bull turns his head just enough to see reflective eyes catch the light of the fire before vanishing.

Bull knows what it feels like just before Ell uses his mark to mess with a rift, a slight metaphysical tug before hell breaks loose. And he braces himself for it, expecting it. But it doesn’t come. Instead, the elf walks into the camp, right where he had left, and laughs. And Bull knows that laugh. He heard it once or twice in Seheron when right before slaves would take blades to their already dying masters. Right after slaves would take blades to the soldiers that beat them and degraded them. And once, right after a Magister died at the hands of a slave, unaided and the slave sat there covered in fresh blood. Laughing.

The next few moments blur. One second the Venatori is desperately trying to pull his staff free as both Dorian and Vivienne hold tight to it, the next he’s coughing up blood, one of Ell’s small daggers thrown right into his back. One second the warriors are scrambling for their weapons, the next they are devoured by flame. The rogues are fast enough to get a few blows, and the light robes Ell wears become torn and sliced as he dodges their blows, blades scarcely glancing at skin. One rogue grabs for his shirt hoping to pull him in close enough to truly do harm and Ell forces one of her daggers out of her hand and turns it on her, the force of her pull impaling her. He turns to the other rogue as she falls taking the rest of his shirt down with her. Then Bull feels the pull, but it’s one of the smaller pulls that comes from Solas or Ell fade punching someone, and as the last rouge falls the dalish mage marches forward and uses the blade at the end of the staff to end it. A clean cut through the throat, and with a flourish he stabs it into the ground.

Ell stalks over to the cage holding Solas and Sera, shattering the lock before climbing in to help them with their shackles. And Bull knows he’s not the only one staring at Ell, the scars on his back and sides clearly from a whip, the ones on his wrists from being bound. The look in his eyes as he helps Sera and Solas from a life where cages and shackles and Magisters were all you knew. After healing Solas and leaving him to tend to Sera, Ell shatters the locks on the other two cages, refusing to make eye contact with anyone.

Injuries and drugging dealt with, the party collects the supplies they can and quickly moves, the closest camp that of the dalish clan who welcomes them shortly after Ell talks to the Keeper. They re-pitch tents nearby and Bull watches as Ell forgoes a tent and walks to the clan’s halla, before promptly curling up next the golden one they lead there that day and passing out.

In the morning Ell is already awake and helping around the camp when the others being to crawl out of their tents. His destroyed clothing has already been replaced by garb similar to the clan’s Keeper. Once the group finds themselves moving the silence moves from uncomfortable to unbearable, and Cole’s emotional probing is what breaks the tension.

_“They all saw it. They all know. Years of hiding and it’s out, and it hurts. Years of hiding it and now everything is going to change and I can’t stop it. What if I lose them, they are all I have now, I can’t lose them, they are my clan now and can’t lose them.”_

 

Ell Lavellan does not trust easily. But he found he might try and trust. Cassandra was willing to teach him how to best fight without magic. Varric told him stories about his broody friend more and more. Solas told him stories of rebellions. Sera dragged him along for pranks and took all the blame when nobles complained. Vivienne stopped making comments on the blatant Dalish nature of his attire. Blackwall left him carved halla and owls (having been brave enough to inquire about his vallaslin). Dorian told him all the best ways to worm past the defenses of Tevinters, and apologized for his remark in Haven, asking if Ell would help him to learn better. Cole found ways to leave small reminders that he is free, that he is safe. And Bull taught him all the ways his body could sing with pleasure.

Cassandra learned that Ell could write amazing short stories. Varric learned that Ell had spent time in shemlen cities learning the best ways to con a shem. Solas learned that Ell has his own stories and that almost every night he relived them over and over. Sera learned that Ell had lived in an alienage for his first few years of freedom before finding his clan. Vivienne learned that Ell had a weak spot for Tevinter capes and Orlisian food. Blackwall learned that Ell used to carve wood beads for necklaces to sell to shemlen and that he was best at the highly demanded griffins. Dorian learned that Ell killed the Magister who had owned him and framed his apprentice. Cole learned that Ell would sing when particularly happy. And Bull learned that Dalish Creamer could make it so that tea would knock you on your ass just as well as maraas-lok.

 

Ell Lavellan does not trust easily. But he’s learning that trusting the right people is so much more rewarding.

**Author's Note:**

> Dalish creamer is like Irish creamer because the dalish need their own alcohol and it made sense to me! Also Ell's vallaslin is in honor of Falon'din because when he first met the clan he told the keeper "i will kill every last slave owner and slaver in tevinter if i have to walk them to the after life myself"  
> also it's not really addressed in the story itself but Ell does have ADHD and the panic over the others reactions is because of RSD.


End file.
